A Summons from Mother

The doors to the hall burst open and man-like beasts poured in. Behind them came there leader, a dark mage. He strode in and stopped just inside the entrance, blocking the doorway, while the beasts encircled the room.

The prince had been watching his little sister's fencing lessons when it happened. As the beasts entered, she dropped her sword and dashed to him. She hid herself in the folds of his cloak, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. Her instructor, a member of the palace guard, positioned himself between the siblings and the mage.

The dark mage glanced at him and sneered. With a flick of his wrist, he flung the guardsman aside. The garden and landed in the heat but one of the beast, proceeded to tear him apart. It happened so fast that the guard didn't even scream. The prince could feel his sister bury her face deeper into his leg as the room echoed with the sound of breaking bones and tearing flesh.

The mage turned his gaze to the pair, and looked the prince in the eye. The prince stiffened as an evil smile spread across the mage's lips. The mage spoke,  "Sorry to barge in like this, boy; but your mother wants to see you."

Scribbles to Kill For

 He stared at the scribbling on the wall. The entire back wall, ceiling to floor, had been painted to be a gigantic chalkboard. Every inch was covered in mathematical and scientific formulas and scribbles. He knew his father had been obsessive about his work, but this was a bit extreme. There were whiteboards hung from the other walls, also filled with writing. Two tables stood parallel in the center, littered with paperwork and contraptions with no obvious purpose. Plates with half finished food and cups of coffee shared the tables with them. He was a genius in his own right, but even he could not decipher his father's work, but somewhere in this madness was something worth killing for.